Maybe I’ve been in the software world for too long. Or maybe I’m a product of my earlier years. You might remember the old Russian proverb, “Doveryai, no proveryai,” which President Reagan made famous in the context of nuclear disarmament. Translated: “Trust, but verify.” Either way, I’m curious about a lot of things, question everything, and work hard to seek proof. It’s this curiosity, and the need for a career change after 25 years working for software vendors, that led me to Forrester.

“Who’s This Guy Covering HCM For Forrester?” 

Some of the perfunctory items: I live in the Washington, D.C. area with my wife of nearly 20 years, Haleh. I enjoy hiking, getting to the gym, traveling, eating fine food/wine, as well as enjoying dive bars (especially seafood shacks on the water), jazz (more on that later), and following baseball and football when I can.

I originally went to school on a music scholarship. I played the drums (big jazz fan). You might remember the movie “Whiplash“? Yeah, I lived that for a while. Let’s just say I received a lot of discipline during those years, which I still call on today. For example, I believe you have to really understand something first — master the music as it’s written (if you will) — before you start to improvise on top of, or around, it.

“What Did He Do Before Joining Forrester?”

Prior to joining Forrester, I worked for SAP as part of the SAP SuccessFactors product leadership team. As SVP of product and solution marketing, I was responsible for the global go-to-market (GTM) strategy and execution of the SAP SuccessFactors HCM Suite, HCM cloud platform tools and technology, and industry GTM and initiatives, such as diversity and inclusion, well-being, and employee experience with SAP S/4HANA and the SAP Intelligent Enterprise. During my career with SAP SuccessFactors, I held several leadership positions in HCM product marketing and solution management.

I came to SAP via its acquisition of SuccessFactors, where I led go-to-market activities for their acclaimed talent management solutions. Prior to SuccessFactors, I led product go-to-market activities for Plateau Systems’ (acquired by SuccessFactors) learning and talent management solutions. Before Plateau, I was vice president at Visual Mining, which focused on next-generation business intelligence solutions. My early career work includes leadership positions at Softek (acquired by IBM) and Legato Systems (acquired by EMC). I hold an MBA, magna cum laude, from Marymount University, Arlington, Virginia.

“How Will He Approach The Human Capital Management Space? How Will He Work With Clients?”

I’m thrilled to be leading the reignition of Forrester’s human capital management (HCM) practice area. As with my previous employer, SAP, I find myself surrounded by a lot of very smart people at Forrester. It’s always humbling to be in the midst of globally recognized soothsayers and big ideas. While I’ve been known to prognosticate, at the end of the day I always default to finding a balance with pragmatism. I believe finding this balance is critical. Why? Because Forrester customers, like you, are looking for both where things are going and, pragmatically, how to actually get there. To me, this balance between forecasting where things are going and providing practical guidance is where creating value for clients exists. This is one of the key reasons I joined Forrester. Here, I will have the opportunity to do both.

“Is He Taking Inquiries And Briefings?”

You bet. As I work on finalizing my initial research agenda, I’d love your feedback and input. In fact, in the short amount of time I’ve been here, I’ve had several dozen inquiries and briefing requests. If I haven’t connected with you, please reach out. I want to hear from you! As I approach my research and work with you, you may not always agree with what I say or advise. That’s just how this works. But you will always get straight shots and hopefully stimulating, new ways to think about things. I can promise you that we’ll pragmatically nail the music as it’s written, and we will improvise and have fun, too.